Genius of the World (from the Tarocchi, series B: Cosmic Principles & Virtues, #33) (before 1467): Art, History and Details

Genius of the World (from the Tarocchi, series B: Cosmic Principles & Virtues, #33) (before 1467) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Master of the E-Series Tarocchi (Italian, active 1460s).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This engraving is part of the group marked with the letter “B,” and named Cosmic Principles and the Virtues, which comprises the three Universal principles or Genii (Light, Time, and Space) alongside the four cardinal virtues (Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude, and Justice) and the three theological ones (Faith, Hope, and Charity). The three allegorical figures of the Genii open group B and appear to be an artistic invention of the author of the Tarocchi series. Here, Cosmico (Genius of the World) is personified as a full-length winged male youth, in frontal view. Behind him is a forest. In his right hand, Cosmico holds up a celestial sphere.

Object facts

• Title: Genius of the World (from the Tarocchi, series B: Cosmic Principles & Virtues, #33)
• Date: before 1467
• Creator attribution: Master of the E-Series Tarocchi (Italian, active 1460s)
• Culture: Italy, Ferrara, 15th century
• Type: Print
• Technique: engraving
• Collection: PR - Engraving
• Department: Prints
• Accession number: 1924.432.33

Collection credit

Dudley P. Allen Fund

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.